CHOCTAW, Miss. – The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians welcomed William “Billy” Kirkland, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs at the U.S. Department of the Interior, and a member of the Navajo Nation, to the Choctaw Central Middle School (CCMS) campus as part of the “History Rocks: America250’s Trail to Independence Tour.” The tour is an initiative of U.S. Department of Education Secretary Linda McMahon. It is traveling to all 50 states in the order in which they joined the Union. This is the tour’s 20th stop, as Mississippi was the 20th state to join the Union on December 10, 1817. CCMS was nominated and then selected as Mississippi’s stop for the “History Rocks” tour.
Welcoming Secretary Kirkland to the campus and to Choctaw Tribal lands were Tribal Chief Cyrus Ben, Choctaw Indian Princess Lexi Rodriguez, Tribal Council Members Vice Chief Ronnie Henry, Sr., Kendall Wallace, and Angela Hundley (Bogue Chitto), Lalania Denson and Richard Sockey (Standing Pine), Nigel Gibson, Deborah Martin, and Kent Wesley (Pearl River), Demando Mingo and Dorothy Wilson (Tucker), Sam John (Red Water), Timothy Thomas, Sr. (Conehatta), CCMS Principal Shannon Smith, and Choctaw Central High School (CCHS) Principal Alaric Keams. Two CCMS Peer Helpers provided the tour of the campus.
“We are deeply honored that Choctaw Central Middle School was selected by Secretary Linda McMahon as Mississippi’s representative for the 20th stop of the History Rocks: America 250 tour. A big thank you to Governor Reeves and his office for recommending our school. It was a privilege to welcome Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs Billy Kirkland as our distinguished guest. I am a strong proponent of education and am dedicated to ensuring our tribal educational system receives its recognition. The Tribe has a great working relationship with both the Departments of Education and Interior, most presently on the new school project. This partnership helped to bring this program to CCMS. A250 History Rocks was a meaningful celebration of history, and it was truly inspiring to participate alongside our students,” said Tribal Chief Ben.
Secretary Kirkland visited CCMS Teacher of the Year Susie Henry’s English class, where students were working on a project featuring Choctaw tales. He also visited the NASA Teacher Enhancement Center, which has the distinction of being the only center of its kind in the U.S. to be located on a school campus. Following the visits, CCMS students gathered for an assembly,
where middle school students opened the program with the Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem in the Choctaw language. Students then participated in two fun games to test their knowledge of U.S. history. Before the program concluded, the CCHS Pow Wow Club showcased traditional Choctaw Social Dancing with the Fast War, Stealing Partners, and Walk Dances. BETA student Anzarius Huddleston offered closing remarks.
